Looking Forward.

It's Tuesday morning and I should be working. However, Scarlett is home recovering from being sick……. This child never gets a break. Praying that spring comes quickly and flushes all these sicknesses away. Even though the holidays are over, life hasn't seemed to slow down that much. I hosted a post-holiday party for the mommy group that I'm part of, took down Christmas decor, accepted a full time position and I'm packing to head back to Massachusetts this week to attend a farewell party among other things.

I have a list of things that I want to do now that the hustle and bustle of the holidays are over. I'm looking forward to doing the good stuff that I haven't had the time to do. I'm itching to redecorate our home again. Not completely, but there are a few areas that I want to change up. Our kitchen backsplash will be tackled next week and I hope to paint then as well. Scarlett's room needs a major overhaul. Christmas brought in a large amount of toys….literally. Her dollhouse is taller than her and rotates on wheels for access on all sides. This makes it hard to put up against a wall. Right now it's sitting in the middle of her room. I've been trying to convince her to let me put it in the playroom downstairs. That isn't going over too well. The playroom downstairs is another project. I am taking the former office and turning it into a play area for Scarlett. The shelving is perfect for her books and toy storage. We will move the computer into the downstairs living room area. This will work out well. When I want to write or do bills at my desk, she can play in her playroom.  Of course photos will follow when all of these things get accomplished.

Scarlett and I have started a new library routine. We go to the library every week or so to pick out new books and movies. She seems to really enjoy this time. She has even started to let me read to her again-something that she stopped being interested in for awhile. In the next month, I have plans to take her on a few new experiences as well. I'm pretty excited about that! Along with reading and fun activities, I really want to write more.  My first true love. The thing that got me through oh-so-many dark days and the one thing that is constant in my life. My song-writer sister posted this quote not long ago and I fell in love with it:

"If you would not be forgotten as soon as you were dead, either write things worth reading or do things worth writing." 

As silly as it sounds, I really do think like this. I think about what I am doing that is meaningful in this great big world. What am I doing that matters and what will I leave behind? I'm not really sure. Although I'm pretty sure that it has something to do with writing. Pursuing what is in your heart is a step in the right direction, wouldn't you say?

I also want to start cooking more. If you know me you know that I absolutely do not enjoy cooking. The shopping, the lugging, the putting it away, the gathering of ingredients, the chopping, the mixing, the waiting….it's so much work for a few minutes of eating. I just never liked it. The crockpot has been my best friend since I took on this home-maker role. Now that I am back to work, I find it even harder. On the days that I am working, we end up eating soup and grilled cheese or pizza. Sometimes that's okay- But I am determined to find some healthy recipes and start cooking more. I was actually raised as a vegetarian so cooking meat never came easy to me. I hope to have a few recipe posts and meal planning guides on the blog.

I have already started working out at the gym again. This wasn't a new year's resolution or anything but I actually have the time to do so again. I love working out and I am looking forward to getting back into this. I also bought a couple of work out dvds for those days when I can't get out of the house.  A lot of people roll their eyes when I say that I'm out of shape. I must tell you! Just because you are thin does not mean that you are in shape. I can feel my skin tighten and muscles tone when I'm working out often. I work out because I feel healthier and I want to sculpt my muscles to be a bit more curvy, not because I want to lose weight. Also, I have had a couple people ask about my work-out routines. Although it has dissipated over the holidays, I will be headed back towards my normal work out routine and I have hopes to put together a post on my favorite work out routines and what I do.

Lastly, I am tremendously looking forward to some much-needed and anticipated vacations. Our last trip to Florida made us realize how nice and refreshing it is to get away now and again. We have a couple fun vacations in mind and one is already booked for one of our favorite places ever!  Of course, vacations are not cheap. Ty and I have had to sit down and re-evaluate our expenses. We are cutting our monthly living expenses almost in half so that we can enjoy more vacations in 2014 and just save in general. I think this is not only wise, but healthy. With a love for shopping, it can be very easy to forget how much money is being spent on material things. Awhile back I realized this and tried to tackle my flawed outlook. This new budget should give me more time to do meaningful things with Scarlett and not focus on material objects. I'm pretty sure that my mind is clear and focused for all the great things that this new year could hold. One thing that I love about beginning a new year is reflecting back on all the goodness that I was blessed with in the past 12 months. Photos, writings, and simply looking at my surroundings are all evidence of a wonderful year. Soon after my time of reminiscing, I start to focus on what lies ahead.

  Right now, the road ahead is looking pretty good…